Tamper Evident Plastic Food Container Frangible Hinge Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing re-closable plastic food containers with tamper evident mechanisms require significant additional material and complex structures, making them difficult to manufacture and use, and often leave behind hazardous waste or unattractive features.
Innovation Solution
A tamper evident plastic food container design featuring a frangible line in the hinge panels that allows for easy opening and re-closing without visible grasping structures, using a simple and clean appearance with minimal material, and a method of thermoforming to create the container from a single sheet of plastic.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional tamper evident mechanisms with visible tabs or complex hinge structures are used, then tamper evidence function is achieved, but device complexity and material usage increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the tamper evident function from traditional visible tabs and complex hinge structures, integrating it into the rim engagement mechanism itself. The frangible section is embedded within the rim-flange structure rather than being a separate visible component, eliminating the need for external tabs while maintaining tamper evidence through the engagement/disengagement of rim features.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the tamper evident function with the sealing function by integrating the frangible section into the rim-flange structure that also provides the seal. The same structural features (ridges, grooves, frangible sections) serve both sealing and tamper evidence purposes, eliminating separate components and reducing overall device complexity.
2Reliability
If traditional tamper evident mechanisms with visible tabs are used, then tamper evidence function is achieved, but manufacturing difficulty increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple functions (sealing, tamper evidence, structural support) into the rim-flange structure, which can be formed in a single molding operation. This integration eliminates the need for separate tabs, hinges, or frangible sections that would require additional manufacturing steps, assembly operations, or specialized tooling.
Solution Approach 2:
The rim-flange structure serves multiple functions simultaneously: providing the seal between lid and base, containing the frangible section for tamper evidence, and serving as the structural engagement mechanism. This multi-functionality reduces the total number of components and simplifies the manufacturing process.
3Reliability
If traditional tamper evident mechanisms with visible tabs are used, then tamper evidence function is achieved, but material usage increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the need for separate visible tabs and complex hinge structures by integrating the tamper evident function into the existing rim-flange structure. This extraction of the tamper evident function from separate components eliminates the additional material that would be required for tabs, hinges, and associated fastening elements.
Solution Approach 2:
The rim-flange structure performs multiple functions (sealing, structural support, tamper evidence) that in traditional designs would require separate components. This multi-functionality consolidates material usage into a single integrated structure rather than requiring additional material for separate tabs, hinges, and fastening elements.
4Reliability
If frangible sections are located on visible tabs, then tamper evidence is provided, but the container can be opened cleanly without visible indication
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the frangible section from visible external tabs and relocates it to the rim-flange structure that forms the sealing interface. This relocation ensures that when the frangible section breaks, the breakdown products remain within the container structure and visible at the sealing interface, preventing clean opening without indication.
Solution Approach 2:
The rim-flange structure is pre-configured with interlocking features (ridges, grooves, frangible sections) that must break or deform for the lid to be removed from the base. This preliminary structural arrangement ensures that tampering is evident before the container can be opened, as the frangible section breakdown products are already positioned at the sealing interface.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The design provides a reliable, aesthetically appealing, and easy-to-use tamper-resistant container that minimizes material usage and avoids hazardous waste, while maintaining tamper evidence without visible tabs or complex structures.
Implementation Method 1
A frangible line extends: a) from a first side edge of the lid hinge panel partially across the lid hinge panel to a first point on the lid hinge panel; b) from the first point outwardly to the hinge and then across the hinge and inwardly from the hinge to a second point on the base hinge panel; and c) from the second point partially across the base hinge panel to a second side edge of the base hinge panel. When the container is in the initially sealed configuration the frangible line separates upon the application of a first upwardly directed force to a first portion of the lid hinge panel, while a second portion of the lid hinge panel is held in a fixed position or moved downwardly.
Data Source
AI summary
A container includes first and second shells sealingly engageable with each other. Each shell includes a rim, where the rim of each shell includes a rim bead having an inner wall and an outer wall. The inner wall and the outer wall of the rim bead of the second shell frictionally engage the inner wall and the outer wall, respectively, of the rim bead of the first shell to sealingly engage the rims. The container also includes hinge panels each extending outwardly from one of the rims of the first and second shells. The hinge panels are hingedly connected to each another along a hinge line to form a foldable section that includes the hinge panels and the hinge line. The foldable section has a frangible line formed on each of the hinge panels, where the frangible line extends transversely between the hinge panels and transects the hinge line.